Preview: Malvern Leopards vs. Harding Academy Wildcats
The Malvern Leopards will head out on the road to face off against the Harding Academy Wildcats at 7:00 p.m. on Friday. Both squads will be entering this one on the heels of a big victory.
Two teams were on the hunt for playoff glory, but only Malvern walked away with it. They breezed by Lonoke at home to the tune of 48-14. Given Malvern's advantage in MaxPreps' Arkansas football rankings (they are ranked 40th, while Lonoke is ranked 130th), the result on Friday wasn't entirely unexpected.
It was another big night for Jalen Dupree, who rushed for 154 yards and three touchdowns on only 11 carries, and also threw for four yards and a touchdown while completing 100% of his passes. Dupree has been hot recently, having posted 100 or more rushing yards the last ten times he's played. Sedrick ?bishop? allen was another key contributor, throwing for 169 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 passes.
Meanwhile, Harding Academy put another one in the bag on Friday to keep their perfect season alive. They took their contest at home with ease, bagging a 49-12 victory over Gentry. The match was pretty much decided by the half, when the score had already reached 49-6.
Owen Miller was his usual excellent self, throwing for 305 yards and three touchdowns on only 13 passes, while also rushing for 86 yards and a touchdown on only six carries. Luv Patel did his part to keep the secondary busy, picking up 85 receiving yards and a touchdown.
Another reason for the win was Harding Academy's imposing defense, which managed to get into the backfield for four sacks. In that department, Samuel Swindle was the leader with two sacks.
Malvern has yet to lose a contest at home this season, leaving them with a 8-3 record. Those victories were due in large part to their offensive dominance across that stretch, as they averaged 47.0 points per game. As for Harding Academy, their victory bumped their record up to 11-0.
We should be in store for an exciting game Friday as Malvern and Harding Academy have no problem gaining yardage. Malvern has been on an offensive roll this season, having averaged 462.4 total yards per game. However, it's not like Harding Academy struggles in that department as they've been averaging 426.2 per game. With a pair of commanding offenses duking it out, the defenses are going to have their work cut out for them. Come back here after the game to get analysis of the match and other football content.
Everything went Malvern's way against Harding Academy in their previous meeting back in December of 2022 as Malvern made off with a 64-39 win. Does Malvern have another victory up their sleeve, or will Harding Academy turn the tables on them? We'll have the answer soon enough.
